Bait and Switch?
As I wrote in a previous newsletter (https://www.griffinfordexter.com/newsletter/my-thoughts-on-the-november-8-2022-election):
“My thoughts: I am in favor of building new at Meadow View Drive and Dexter-Ann Arbor Road. With every rendering I’ve seen of a proposed renovation at the existing site, I can’t help but think we’d be trying to fit a square peg into a round hole—and for approximately the same cost. Further, I see so much potential in future developments of Mill Creek Park North and re-uses of the existing building. Public parking could be improved. Access from Alpine Street down to the park could be improved (anyone else ever try to get a stroller from the library down to the park?!). Perhaps the winter farmer’s market could be moved into the building. Perhaps the public could rent out part of the building for events. Perhaps there’s room for a restaurant with patio seating. Of course, market forces are at play here. These types of businesses/organizations would need to want to relocate here and fund doing so and/or the public would need to support any upgrades or renovations if the property remains owned by the City. But, if we cram a fire station onto this site, none of these options will be a possibility.
What if the millage passes? If the millage passes, I would expect the next seated Council (with any new members elected in November) to select a location and final site plan and move the project forward. Perhaps it’s the location you want; perhaps it’s not the location you want. Does that matter to you? That’s for you to decide.”
At City Council’s last meeting (see video excerpt here), an attempt was made to designate the current fire station site (8140 Main Street) as the continuing future site of the fire station, thereby ruling out any possibility of building a new fire station at what has been called “the MAV site” (Meadow View Drive and Dexter-Ann Arbor Road). Although the motion was ultimately postponed, four of the seven council members (Hubbard, Keough, Schlaff, and Semifero) voiced their support for the motion and the remaining three council members (Aldag (formerly Arab), Griffin, and Michels) voiced their opposition to the motion.
At our upcoming meeting (Monday, February 27; see my newsletter here), Council is set to revisit that motion as well as a new motion to authorize the issuance of the bonds approved by voters in November 2022.
Since our last meeting, Lucas Smolcic Larson from The Ann Arbor News reached out to Council for their thoughts on the topic. You can read his article here.
I prepared a number of comments in response to Mr. Smolcic Larson’s request and am sharing them in their entirety below:
Hi Council Member Griffin,
Thanks for getting back to me today. Here’s what I was hoping to get your thoughts on:
-Where do you fall on the question of where the city should pursue a new/renovated fire station? What are the biggest factors that inform that decision?
-Have your views on this changed at all during your time on Council? What’s info has been most important to you in making this decision?
When I first joined City Council in November 2020, my inclination was that the then-proposed new fire station at Dexter Ann Arbor and Meadow View was very costly; I needed time to understand whether those proposed costs were justified. Since that time, after considering information from a variety of sources, I have made it clear on many occasions that I support a new fire station at the site selected by a previous Council.
The following information has been most compelling to me:
1. In July 2022, we received an updated cost estimate (see page 4) of the proposal to renovate the existing fire station that revealed renovating offered no significant cost savings. Additionally, renovation costs include significant costs to relocate fire services outside of the City during the construction/renovation period--that's money spent that buys us nothing and, worse yet, increases response times into the City for the duration of the renovation. Lastly, as we've seen with the renovation of 3515 Broad Street (our new City Hall), renovating an existing building comes with many unanticipated costs. Our budget for this project is already maxed out; there is little to no room for error without making significant and fundamental changes to the design.
2. In the same packet referenced above (see page 10), our consultant shared a table illustrating the programmatic/functional advantages and disadvantages of renovating at the current site vs. building new at Dexter Ann Arbor and Meadow View. Building new offers clear advantages on aspects like apparatus maneuvering, complying with best practices, and properly spacing the planned apparatus. Per that table, the only disadvantage of the new site is that it is not "downtown;" however, I think that building a new station in a location that is more central to the City of Dexter is a huge advantage to the residents I have been elected to represent. As Chief Armstrong has indicated, future DAFD staffing plans project having two full-time firefighters at each of the three stations, decreasing the number of calls that will leave the City of Dexter station to travel to our partnering communities of Dexter and Webster Township. Just as Dexter and Webster Townships selected the location for their substations that best served their community, so, too, do we need to select a location that best serves City of Dexter residents.
3. In the packet for our most recent meeting (see page 230), we received a site aerial of 8140 Main Street with the placement of the proposed fire station renovation. I can think of no better way to illustrate the concept of "trying to fit a square peg into a round hole." Even as the City's parks and recreation commission is considering ways to enhance the gem of a park that is Mill Creek Park North (immediately adjacent to the current fire station), renovating and expanding the existing fire station further mucks up the current limitations of that site: poor pedestrian access from the library down to the park, congested intersections and dangerous pedestrian crossings, and limited parking for park users. Removing the fire station from that site frees the City up to properly remedy those issues in a way that enhances the existing park.
-In your view, why has making a decision on this matter taken as long as it has for Council?
A complete response to this question is surely beyond the scope of whatever you're preparing and would require a comparison of the timelines of various key decisions (e.g., appointing a City Manager, filling City Council vacancies, buying a new City Hall) that Council has made over the years. What members of the public should know is that this process has been intentionally delayed and manipulated until the minimum threshold to achieve a predetermined outcome has been reached, regardless of how long the delay and with no regard for any new information that was brought to the table. As far back as 2016, a Facility Committee consisting of then-Council Members Paul Cousins, Jim Smith, and Julie Knight, then-DDA representative Fred Schmid, and then-Village President (and since City Mayor) Shawn Keough, voted to recommend to the then-City Council that 8140 Main Street should no longer be considered as a site for a future fire station. Mayor (then-President) Keough, the only member of that committee still on Council today, was the lone no vote. Further, in 2020, a previous council voted to erect the sign that reads "Proposed Future Home of the Dexter Fire Station" at Dexter Ann Arbor and Meadowview before voting to submit a millage to the voters tied to that location only to postpone doing so. Again, the only two people who were on the Council both then and now are Mayor Keough and Zach Michels. And Zach Michels remains adamantly opposed to renovating the current fire station. Will this be the most expensive war of attrition in the City’s history?
-Is it important for you that council members reach a consensus or come close on this question? What would a 4-3 vote one way or another mean?
A council member's vote should reflect their position on the motion. If consensus hasn't been reached, the votes should reflect that. A 4-3 vote means that four people supported the motion and three people didn't.
I haven’t listened to all of your meetings on this topic, but did catch the one last night (2/13) and can draw from the conversation there.
Two final thoughts:
At our most recent meeting, Council Member Dan Schlaff raised concerns about the City's ability to maintain vacant City-owned property. The thinking seems to be that if we build a new fire station, the current site will sit vacant and require resources the City doesn't have to maintain it. If, in fact, staff does not have the resources it needs to maintain City-owned properties, that certainly needs to be addressed by Council; however, I do not support putting a $9 million fire-station-shaped band aid on top of that problem.
The millage that was actually approved by the voters this past November was not tied to a specific location. Council can spend the money at either site or even a yet-to-be-determined site. That being said, given that the sign still stands, I suspect many residents will be quite surprised if the fire station they voted to support is not the new build at the new site. Will they perceive this to be a bait and switch?
As a reminder:
City of Dexter City Council Meeting
and Public Hearing
Monday, February 27, 2023 at 7 p.m.
3515 Broad Street, Dexter, MI 48130 and via Zoom
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88141381694
Dial In 877 853 5247 OR 888 788 0099 US Toll-free
Meeting ID: 881 4138 1694#
As always, there are two opportunities for non-arranged public participation: one near the beginning of the meeting and one near the end of the meeting. See the agenda for details. Just state your name and address and then share your thoughts–it’s that easy!
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